To Escape the Inevitable
by BeInspiring1999
Summary: When you are forced to leave your home and your family for your own protection and are struggling to stay optomistic, you wouldn't think you'd find comfort in one of the darkest wizards of all time. Christiana is faced with this delema, all while trying to keep her true identity a secret from him and everyone else. But what do you expect when you're trying to escape the inevitable?
1. Prologue: Breaking Point

"NO!" she screamed as his lifeless body fell to the ground.

She ran to him and collapsed at his side. He couldn't be gone. He just couldn't. But he was. And it was all her fault.

She had pleaded for him to let her come here tonight; to let her come to ensure both of their futures. But he wouldn't let her come unless he came as well, and look what it had cost him.

He did it to protect her. He sacrificed himself for her, and now she was once again alone.

She looked up and saw the figure of the man who had just ripped away one of the last people she held dear and anger boiled up inside her.

She would kill him. She would make him suffer just as he had made him suffer.

She slowly raised herself to her feet and took three steps forward, wand drawn at the ready. Just as she was about to chase after the swine, two arms restrained her with a vice-like grip. She struggled against it, screaming, kicking, scratching, but whoever it was held fast to her.

Her captor then began to whisper things to her, but she was too consumed in anger to care. Finally, she stopped struggling and whoever it was loosened his grip around her which was exactly what she had wanted.

She quickly darted from their grasp and through the door the object of her anger disappeared through moments earlier.

She could here her captor persuing her, but she didn't care. She kept running until she could no longer hear them behind her and when she finally did stop, she found herself in a dark room filled entirely by mirrors. Everywhere she looked she could see herself looking back, and behind her, only a dark abyss.

She felt another's presence in the room, almost as if dozens of eyes where boring into the back of her skull. She slowly turned about, scanning her surroundings for any sign of movement, ears straining to hear any sound that would give away any indication of another being's presence.

When she finally stopped turning and stood still, she heard someone softly breathing behind her. She looked up and saw his eyes borring into hers as he smiled twistedly at her, wand pointed at her back.

Her eyes burned with rage. He took him, and now he would pay dearly for what he had done.

She turned around sharply to face him, and before he could get a word out, a stream of blue light jetted out from the tip of her wand.

Her spell bounced off a sheild he had created for himself and she dodged the rebound just before it hit her square in the chest. Instead, the spell crashed into the mirror that had stood directly behind her. A cry of anguish escaped her throat as the entire room burst into a cacophony of shattering glass. The last thing she saw was a jet of green light hit her enemy square in the chest and his lifeless body crumple to the ground before everything in her vision went black.


	2. Chapter 1: An Arrival and A Departure

**_August 10, 1942_**

"Hurry, Christiana!" Anya urged her daughter as the pair blindly stumbled through the inky blackness of the forest.

Christiana pulled her cloak tighter about her shoulders and struggled to keep up with her mother. "Mother, where are we going?" she asked sounding somewhat winded, but her mother refused to answer, only pausing a moment to shoot her daughter a pointed look which caused her to fall silent once more.

A Siberian wolf's mournful howl could be heard in the distance and Christiana shuddered at the thought of running into one of them. She quickly picked up her pace so that she could walk beside her mother who immediately took Christiana's hand in hers.

Christiana then tripped on an underlying tree root, and practically fell on top of her mother. "Are you alright?" she asked her daughter, helping her to regain her balance.

"Yes," Christiana replied, wincing at the pain in her ankle.

"Let me see it," Anya requested, bending down to examine her child's tender ankle. After grimacing slightly, she muttered something indecipherable under her breath and the pain in Christiana's ankle immediately vanished. "Better?" Anya questioned.

"Much, thank you," Christiana replied. "Mother, why can't we just light our wands? Then we won't have to worry about my clumsiness as we walk," she joked in an effort to lighten the mood.

"Because we will be easier to spot that way. Now just take my hand and I'll try to keep you from t

ripping over anything else," Anya explained, entirely overlooking her daughter's attempt at humor and holding her hand out for her to take.

About fifteen minutes later, Christiana was about to ask again where they were headed when her mother suddenly stopped walking and stiffened. Christiana strained to hear what caused her mother to halt, but couldn't hear anything other than the eerie silence of the forest.

"What is it?" Christiana whispered worriedly. That was when she heard a twig snap to her right.

"Run!" her mother ordered urgently as she took off in opposite direction of the sound, dragging her daughter along behind her.

After realizing they had been found out, men's frustrated shouts rang out through the quiet of the night. By the sounds of it, there must have been at least half a dozen of them. It only took a couple of moments for their pursuers to open fire upon them, and soon enough, the quiet of the forest was disturbed by the explosions of spells colliding with trees.

Christiana couldn't suppress the involuntary scream that escaped her lips as a spell whizzed directly by her ear. Her mother and herself returned fire as best they could, taking at least one out before her mother finally said, "Get ready to Apparate!"

Before she got a chance to reply, Christiana felt herself being uncomfortably squeezed as her body rocketed forward towards some unknown destination. When her feet finally returned to solid ground, she was gasping for air and after a moment, she vomited.

Her mother gently rubbed her back as she continued to retch and said soothingly, "Its alright. Just get it all out."

When she finally finished, Christiana's breathing was labored and she was leaning heavily on her mother. "Are you alright?" her mother asked for the second time that night, and she nodded.

"Good," her mother continued, smiling. "Considering the circumstances, you did pretty well for your first time. Most everyone vomits the first go around."

"Can't imagine why," Christiana rasped, winning a small chuckle from her mother.

After a waiting a moment to catch her breath, Christiana asked, "Mama, who were those people? What did they want?"

"That is something you don't need to worry yourself about right now," her mother replied.

"He sent them, didn't he? The man that's been after us, those were his men weren't they?" she persisted to question and her mother sighed.

"Yes," she answered with a tone that warned Christiana not to ask anymore questions. "We best keep going," she continued, offering her daughter her arm.

"Where are we anyway?" Christiana asked, still a bit unnerved by the sudden appearance of the men earlier.

"Inside the Forbidden Forest, just outside the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," her mother replied calmly.

"Hogwarts? As in the famous wizarding school in Great Britain?" Christiana asked incredulously.

"Yes."

"But why?"

"Because I am close to one of the professors here and he promised me that you would be safe," Anya explained as they exited the forest and the castle came into view.

"Wait, you're leaving me here?" Christiana asked angrily, coming to a complete stop.

Anya sighed and turned to face her daughter. "Yes, but its for your protection," she said.

"Protection from what, mother?" the younger girl hissed angrily. "Whatever it is, I'm sure I could handle it! I've been able to put up with the running and the secrecy for months now! How is tonight any different from the past hundred?"

"Chrissy..." her mother started, a pained look in her eyes.

"Don't you see? I want to stay with you! I want to help!" Christiana exclaimed, her voice reaching a tone close to hysteria.

"Christiana..." her mother tried again, this time a touch of warning edged into her tone.

"No, I will not let you abandon me here! I will not let you do to me what you did to-" she started to shriek, not caring if anyone else heard her, before she was abruptly cut off by her mother.

"Enough! I will not have you throw your life away just because you are too stubborn to listen to reason!" her mother burst out, causing Christiana to fall into shocked silence.

After an agonizingly long moment, Anya sighed and pulled her daughter into a tight, comforting embrace. "I'm sorry, darling. I wish I didn't have to leave you either, but Albus will take care of you, I promise. I wouldn't leave you here if I believed that you would be in danger," Anya said kissing her daughter's forehead. "I just don't want you getting hurt. Do you understand, Chrissy?"

"Yes Mama," Christiana replied quietly, clutching her mother tightly and burying her head into her shoulder.

They remained just like that for a long time and after reluctantly pulling away, Anya took her daughter's hand in her's and the pair then approached the front doors to the school. Just as Anya raised her hand to knock, the giant set of doors were opened by a kindly looking man with unique half-mooned glasses.

"Hello Albus," Christiana's mother greeted the man with a tired smile.

"Good evening, Anya? How are you?" the man, Albus, asked politely, extending his hand to her and shaking it.

"Fine. I would like to thank you again for agreeing to have Chrissy stay here for the time being, what with everything else-"

"I can assure you, my dear that it isn't a problem in the least having Miss Christiana stay here. It is what the school was built for, anyway," he said with a wink. He then turned to Christiana and said, "My name is Professor Dumbledore, the Transfiguration instructor here at Hogwarts. It is a pleasure to meet you, my dear."

Christiana shook hands with him just as her mother had, but remained silent, settling for a quite nod of acknowledgement.

"Now that we have the formalities out of the way, would you both like to come in?" Professor Dumbledore asked kindly, blue eyes sparkling.

"I'm afraid I can't stay, Albus. I have already done so much longer than I should have," Anya replied. Dumbledore nodded understandingly as she turned to face her daughter who was now fighting to hold her tears at bay. "Don't cry my darling. We'll be together again soon," she said soothingly, pulling her child into her arms again. The tears began to flow freely as Chrissy sobbed into her mother's shoulder and held her tightly, praying that she would wake up and this would all just be a very bad dream.

Anya returned the embrace and after a moment, she pushed back a little ways. "I promise to write as often as I can, but before I go I want to give you this," she said removing a locket from around her neck and placing it around her daughter's.

"Your mother's locket?" Chrissy sniffled.

"This way, you will always have your grandmama and I here with you," her mother explained with a small smile. She then pulled her daughter into another hug where she whispered, "I love you."

"I love you too, Mama. Thank you," Chrissy whispered.

Anya then pulled away, wiping tears from her own eyes. "We'll be fine," she said and after nodding a farewell to Dumbledore, she disappeared again into the night.

After a long silence, a loud crack could be heard in the distance signifying her mother's departure, and Chrissy struggled to keep her tears in check.

Her mother was gone. And Christiana was alone.

"Shall we, my dear?" Dumbledore asked from where he still stood behind her and she nodded silently, turning back around to face him.

Dumbledore then gestured for her to precede him into the castle and after she was safely inside, he closed the doors with a resounding thud. A sense of finality jolted through Christiana and to prevent the flow of unwanted tears, she clutched her mother's locket to her chest, finding comfort in the love that seemed to pulsate through her from within.

* * *

><p>It was't long before Christiana found herself in a small office somewhere within the castle, Professor Dumbledore sitting quietly behind the desk in front of her. She knew that she should say something to him, but felt so disoriented that she remained silent, blankly staring at the man in front of her.<p>

After a long silence, Professor Dumbledore asked, "Would you like some hot cocoa, Miss Volokov? I find that it tends to serve as a balm to the soul in times such as this."

Christiana nodded and a cup of the sweet-smelling liquid appeared before her. Taking the steaming mug into her hands, she reveled in the warmth that seeped into her fingers and after taking a small sip of the chocolaty liquid, she could immediately feel herself relax. There must have been a Calming Drought mixed into the brew, but she didn't mind. Moments of peace had been few and far between over the last couple of months and she gladly welcomed the feeling of calm that washed over her.

"Now, Miss Volokov-"

"Chrissy, please. I prefer to be called Chrissy. Miss Volokov just sounds a bit overly formal, especially considering how close my mother claims you to be to my family," she interrupted and Dumbledore smiled.

"How true," he agreed and continued. "Chrissy, I know that you have had a rather long and exhausting night and I hate to have to deprive you of any more sleep, but before I let you go there are a couple of things I need to discuss with you."

Chrissy sat up straight and set her half-empty mug down on the desk in front of her. "Yes, I dare say we do," she agreed quietly.

"I'm glad you feel the same way my dear, for this is in fact a very important matter that needs to be settled tonight," he said and Chrissy nodded for him to continue. "You see, we need to figure out a false name for you," he said and Chrissy's brows furrowed.

"Excuse me for asking what probably sounds like a stupid question, but why do I need a false name while I am here?" she asked.

Professor Dumbledore chuckled as he answered, "My dear, there is no such thing as a stupid question. To answer your inquiry, you will need a false name here because we don't want anyone to know your true identity and potentially give you away to someone on the outside. Not even any of the other teachers can know your real name."

"What about the headmaster? Shouldn't he know about my true identity? I mean, you all are taking quite a risk in housing me here, if you don't mind my saying so," she asked.

"Oh, Headmaster Dippet knew of your arrival long before you even showed up here tonight. He was the one who I had to seek permission from to allow you to stay here as an exchange student. You see, you will be this school's very first one. And don't worry, he's already been informed of the _risks_, as you put it," he explained.

"I see," she replied.

Sensing her uncertainty, Dumbledore went on to say, "Do not worry, Chrissy. Dippet has a tendency to be a little scatterbrained at times, but I promise you, he would never do or say anything that could potentially bring harm to one of his students."

After this explanation, Christiana gave a small sigh of relief and smiled. "So," she started, "what should my false name be?"

"I think that you should decide on that my dear. It might help you remember it a little bit better," he replied and she nodded.

After a long moment of thought, she finally said, "I've always admired the name Elise."

"Alright, Elise. Now, what is your last name?" he asked, jotting it down on a sheet of paper.

"Thatcher," she replied after another long pause.

"Elise Thatcher it is then," Dumbledore said sounding very pleased. "Now Miss Thatcher-"

"Wait. We're starting now?" she interrupted.

"Yes, it's good practice. It's better that you slip up now in the privacy of my office than out there where it actually matters, true?" he asked and Chrissy nodded in understanding. "Now Miss Thatcher, there is one more thing we need to settle," he continued.

"And what's that?" Chrissy said, failing to suppress a yawn.

Dumbledore chuckled, "It can wait until tomorrow. Right now, I believe that it would benefit us both if we turned in for the night."

"But where will I sleep tonight, sir?" Chrissy asked sleepily.

"Why, in your safe room, of course," Dumbledore replied matter-of-factly.

"And where is my safe room, sir?" she inquired.

"Oh its everywhere, my dear," he said, looking intently at her.

"Sir?" she said confusedly.

"You can get to your safe room from anywhere in the school, Miss Thatcher. That way, if anyone showed up at the castle with the intent to harm you or to take you away, you could get to your safe room without the risk of traveling through the halls and running into one of them. And no one will be the wiser," he explained with a gleam in his eye.

"Let me guess, sir. You came up with this ingenious idea yourself?" she asked, grinning subtly at him.

"You would be correct, Miss Thatcher," he affirmed.

"And how do I get into this safe room?"

"That is an excellent question my dear. All you have do is walk up to a wall and say Angardrium Revelio and the door to the room will appear," he explained.

"Seems simple enough," she said and Dumbledore chuckled.

"Summoning the door is easy. The real challenge lies within," he said. After seeing her confused look, he continued, "Come with me and I'll show you what I mean."

He then strode over to one of the walls and motioned for her to join him. She walked up next to him, faced the wall, and said, "Angardrium Revelio."

A door immediately appeared before them and Chrissy couldn't suppress the small smile that spread across her lips. She opened the door and the pair then stepped inside.

The room they entered was pitch black and it was eerily quiet. "Professor?" she called out.

"I'm right here, Miss Thatcher," he said lighting his wand.

It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the sudden light, but once they did, she gasped at what stood before her.

A majestic griffin blocked the passageway, its large, intelligent eyes gleaming brightly in the wand light. It cawed as it pawed the ground, its wings spreading in a threatening manner. Christiana felt her eyes widen as Dumbledore laid a reassuring hand on her arm.

"Miss Thatcher, this is your guardian griffin, Cerel. He was brought here from Albania for your protection and has been trained to only let you and I pass," he explained.

"But how does he know that I'm me, sir? This is the first time he's seen me, isn't it?" she asked and Dumbledore smiled.

"Yes, but we are introducing you to him right now, are we not?" he asked with a gleam in his eye. He then turned to the creature in front of them and said, "Cerel, this is your charge. Take good care of her and remember to always let her and only her in. She can leave whenever she pleases, so don't get mad at her if she does, alright?"

The griffin nodded and bowed his head to Christiana who nodded in return, flashing him a small smile. "Hello, Cerel," she greeted, taking a step towards him. "I would like to thank you for being willing to come here and be my companion for the next couple of months. And just to show you how grateful I am, I would like to give you a little treat."

The griffin looked at her curiously as she reached behind her back and conjured a large piece of meat. Once she revealed her gift, the creature gladly snapped it up and munched on the offer contently. Chrissy walked up to him, petted his neck gently, and whispered, "And I promise to get you some candles in the morning. No one deserves to be stuck in the dark all the time."

The griffin nuzzled her affectionately and she giggled.

"I can tell he likes you," Dumbledore said, as she walked back over to stand next to him. "That's good. He'll be more willing to protect you now. And may I just say that you have superb conjuring skills, my dear," he commented and she blushed.

"My mother has been teaching me magic since I was very young, starting mostly with protection spells and gradually branching out into the other fields," she said quietly.

Dumbledore motioned for them to keep walking before he asked, "How long has she been teaching you, Miss Thatcher?"

"Since I was about seven years old. I think she wanted me to be able to protect myself if..." she trailed off and Dumbledore nodded in understanding.

It wasn't long before the two came upon another door which Dumbledore opened for Christiana to enter. Once inside, she looked about the room in awe. It had everything that one would need to live in. There was a kitchen and pantry with supplies stocked up enough to last well over two months, a washroom with a large shower and porcelain sink, a bedroom with a large four-poster bed and royal purple hangings, and a window that overlooked the Hogwarts grounds, the Forbidden Forest a dark mass just along the school boundary line. She walked from room to room, each providing a new and pleasant surprise. There was a simple elegance about the room that drew her in and she smiled at how at home it made her feel.

"This room was designed to fit your every need if you indeed had to spend a long period of confinement in here. I hope that it will suffice," Dumbledore said from the doorway and Christiana looked back at him in shock.

"This is so much more than I could have ever asked for. You really shouldn't have gone to all the trouble," she said and he chuckled.

"I can assure you my dear that it was hardly any trouble at all. Headmaster Dippit and I both agreed that you should be able to feel as much at home as any other student, especially since this castle will be your home for the time being," he commented and Christiana smiled.

"Thank you, sir. You don't know how much this means to me," she thanked and he returned her smile.

"It was my pleasure, Miss Thatcher. Now, I should let you get some sleep. You're going to need it for the weeks leading up to the beginning of the school year. I dare say we'll keep you busy," he said with a twinkle in his eye.

"Good night, professor," she said.

"Good night, my dear. Let me know if you need anything," he said as he walked out the door, leaving Christiana alone in her new room.

Dumbledore's optimistic and kind-hearted personality was a welcome change, and even after recalling the events that had played out earlier that night, she was actually beginning to believe that everything would be alright. She glanced up at the clock that hung on the opposite wall and saw that it read five minutes past midnight. She yawned sleepily and turned to face her new bed that practically called out to her. Pushing the thought of sleep momentarily from her mind, she strode over to the dresser and rummaged through it until she found some appropriate sleepwear for the muggy summer nights. She then went into the bathroom where she washed up and prepared for bed.

After lying down within the soft folds of the blankets, she summoned one last memory of her family all together again before falling into a deep and dreamless sleep.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Christiana awoke extremely disoriented. She looked around and found herself in a strange room that oddly made her feel at home. Feeling very confused, she tried to summon up memories from the night before and once she could recall everything that happened she slumped back down onto the bed, tears flooding her eyes.<p>

She remembered everything, from their escapade through the forest and the attack by the mysterious men to her mother's departure and her and Dumbledore's lengthy conversation just before midnight. She remembered her unpleasant side-along Apparition experience and her introduction to Cerel. She remembered twisting her ankle and the gift of her mother's locket which she reached for and clutched with all her strength.

"Why couldn't it have all been a dream?" she whispered to herself, a single tear escaping her eye which she furiously brushed away.

After allowing herself one small moment of self pity, Christiana forced herself out from under her warm, protective blanket and slowly shuffled over to the bathroom where she proceeded to ready herself for the day ahead. Once finished, she took the opportunity to take a good long look at herself in the mirror. Her long, dark hair was currently tied back in a very intricate braid that nicely complemented her soft facial features and her cheeks were somewhat rosy, still retaining that just-woken-up shine to them. Finally, she looked herself in the eyes, unique sea-blue eyes with hazel flecks that so much so resembled those of her mother that she had to close her eyes to once again keep her tears in check.

Anyone who knew Christiana closely knew that she wasn't much of one for tears, or for any other extravagant display of emotion. In fact, she was ashamed of herself at the moment because of her over-excessive show of emotion. She had learned early on that if people knew your weaknesses they could hurt you, and wearing your emotions on your sleeve was the best way for others to find out those weaknesses.

She took a few deep breaths to calm herself before finally reopening her eyes, confidently looking herself in the eye once more, and striding from the bathroom to the kitchen where she continued her morning routine by making herself breakfast.

About halfway through her meal, the door to her little hideaway, as she had fondly decided to call her new room, opened and in stepped Professor Albus Dumbledore.

"Good morning, Miss Thatcher," he greeted with a smile, which she returned gladly. She was hoping for him to show up if for no other reason than to give her a distraction from her rather unpleasant thoughts.

"Good morning, professor," she replied. "Did you have a good night's rest?"

"Yes indeed, I am happy to say. And yourself, my dear?" he asked pleasantly.

"Much better than I thought possible, sir," she answered honestly.

"Good, good. I see you've found your food storage," he commented, gesturing towards her plate of scrambled eggs and bacon with a side of toast and a hot cocoa to drink.

"Yes," she said, a hint of a laugh in her voice. "Would you like something? I made extra."

"A piece of toast and some hot chocolate sounds quite appetizing," he requested, sitting down across the table from Christiana.

She then turned around in her seat and, waving her wand, summoned a plate with some toast, a mug filled to the brim with hot cocoa and whipped cream, and a small jar of raspberry jam.

"It's one of my favorites," she commented as the jam landed just to the right of Dumbledore's plate.

"What a coincidence. It is one of mine as well," he said, smiling.

They ate their breakfast in silence and once all of the dishes were washed and put away, Christiana offered a seat to Dumbledore in her small sitting area.

"Before you showed me to my living quarters last night sir, you said that there was one other thing that we needed to settle," she started and Dumbledore smiled at her.

"That I did. And to settle part of this thing, we are going to need something that is inside of my office. Come with me, Miss Thatcher," he said, rising and then leading the way out the door.

As the pair passed Cerel to get to the door, Christiana slipped him a small piece of bacon which he happily accepted, affectionately nuzzling her as she walked by.

Dumbledore waited for her at the end of the tunnel and said, "I never showed you how to exit this room so I think now would be a good time to do so, don't you think?"

Christiana nodded, a small smile on her face.

"All you have to do is tell the door here where you would like to go and it will take you there. Why don't you try it?" he directed.

"Surly it can't be that easy, sir?" Christiana said, glancing warily at the door.

"I would have made it harder, but I figured that if anyone other than you or I did manage to get in here, you would probably need a quick way out," he explained and she nodded in reluctant understanding.

Taking a step forward, she said, "I would like to go to Professor Dumbledore's office, please."

She then turned the nob and opened the door into the professor's cozy, little office that remained as cheerful and inviting as it had the previous night.

"Now, on to business," he stated, walking over to where a tattered, old hat that she hadn't noticed the night before now sat. He picked it up and turned back around to face the now curious teenager.

"What is it?" she questioned, eyes wide in wonder, obviously seeing its beauty and potential when most others would just discard it as the old and worn hat that it appeared to be.

"This, Miss Thatcher, is the school's Sorting Hat. We use it to determine which house each student of Hogwarts belongs to. The houses are Gryffindor, for the brave and valiant of heart, Hufflepuff, for the loyal and compassionate, Ravenclaw, for the curious and knowledge-seekers, and Slytherin, for the sly and cunning," he explained, and Christiana felt a small shiver go down her spine at the mentioning of the last one.

As if reading her thoughts, he continued by saying, "But not to worry, my dear. All of the houses are wonderful and I am sure that whichever one you are placed in will be a perfect fit for you."

"Alright. I just have one question, though," she said and Dumbledore nodded for her to continue. "No offense intended towards you sir, but if this hat is of such importance, then why is it not in the Headmaster's office?" she asked, a little hesitantly.

Dumbledore chuckled. "I figured that you would ask that. To answer your question though, it is, but Armando graciously allows me to make sure that the hat still remains in working order every year, and I thought, what better way to test it this year than by having you sorted?" he said.

"It makes sense," she agreed, and Dumbledore gestured for her to take a seat.

"All you have to do is put it on and the hat will do the rest," he explained and she did as she was told.

As soon as she placed the hat upon her brow, a breathy voice whispered into her ear, _Well, well, well. What do we have here? It's a bit early for me to be sorting someone, is it not? _

_I guess so,_ she thought, _but I'm new around here so I'm probably not the best person to ask that question to, sir._

_Of course you are not. You're far too young to be a teacher testing me and too old to be a first year and I certainly have never been placed on your head before, but no matter. Let's see here. You have both a kind and valiant heart as well as a thirst for knowledge. You would do anything for those that you care most about and are not one to back down from a fight,_ the hat continued and it somewhat frightened Christiana to know just how accurate he really was. Before she could say anything else to him, however, he continued, _But there is also another darker side to you that you keep hidden away from everyone else. A side that when left unchecked, can be let loose and can devastate those around you. A side that is cool, calculative, and dangerous. _

_Stop,_ she heard herself say in her head._ I get it, now please stop. _

_As you wish. Just remember Miss Volokov, you cannot hide from yourself forever. Besides, by putting you in a certain house, I'm pretty sure I'd be doing you a favor,_ it breathed and she felt herself stiffen.

_No, no, no, please... _she pleaded within her mind.

"SLYTHERIN!" it cried and her heart sank to her feet. She quietly removed her hat from her head.

"How curious," Dumbledore commented and Christiana handed the hat back to him.

"That was just a test, right?" she asked hopefully.

"If you believe it to be wrong then you may try again," Dumbledore said kindly.

Christiana struggled silently within herself. She did wish to put the hat on again, for it to correct what may or may not have been a mistake, but she knew deep down that there was truth to what it had said. She finally just shook her head.

"No, I don't think it is wrong," she said, steadily meeting Dumbledore's gaze.

"Very well. If you are sure," he said and then returned the Sorting Hat to it's former resting place. "Now, onto the next item on our to-do list," he said, going to sit behind his desk. He then returned his gaze to hers and continued, "Picking your classes."

Christiana began to feel slightly giddy at this and smiled broadly at Professor Dumbledore. "Do you have a list of classes for me to choose from, because I've never actually attended any form of magical school before?" she asked and Dumbledore nodded.

"Your mother warned me of this, so I had a whole list drawn up of all the classes that are provided here at Hogwarts," he said, withdrawing a long piece of paper from somewhere inside his desk.

"Thank you, sir," she said, accepting the parchment and scanning over the items on the lengthy list.

It took them a while, but they finally managed to get a list of classes that she wished to take together that consisted of Charms, Potions, Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, History of Magic, Care of Magical Creatures, Arithmancy, and the Study of Ancient Runes.

Feeling satisfied with the classes she would be taking, she turned to Dumbledore and asked, "Is there anything else you need me for?"

"Just one more thing my dear and then we will be finished. I can tell that you are ready to go exploring," he answered, a twinkle in his eye.

"What do we have left to do?" she asked.

"We have to give you a back story. It would seem suspicious if we didn't have one already planned and someone asked you something and you say one thing and then they come to me for confirmation and I say another thing entirely, wouldn't you agree?" he explained and Christiana nodded. "We don't want it to be too far out there though, because then it could also have the potential to look suspicious. We don't want people to look farther into your story than absolutely necessary," he continued and she nodded her head again in agreement.

"So what should it be?" she asked.

"Well, you chose a name that sounds distinctly English, maybe even American so we have to have something that explains that part of your story and another piece should explain your accent," he said.

"Is my accent really that noticeable?" she asked.

"Not unless you are paying very close attention, but I can assure you there will be some people that will notice and want answers," he explained.

They both took a moment to think when Christiana finally got an idea. "I guess my father could have been an Englishman and my mother a native Russian. They could have met when they were both on trips to Germany where they fell in love, eventually got married, and decided to stay in Germany to raise their family. He knew you and with Hitler's power growing and threatening my safety, he shipped me here where I would then be protected from the present Great Muggle War," she suggested.

"Very nice, Miss Thatcher. It sounds believable enough considering that many people, wizards and Muggles alike, are evacuating from the continent to escape from the quickly escalating war," he said.

"So, do we have a back story?" Christiana asked.

"I suppose we do, Miss Thatcher. And thankfully we have plenty of time between now and the beginning of the term to smooth out any kinks in your story," he said.

Christiana grinned at the professor and then asked, "Is that all, sir?

"I believe it is. If there is anything else we need to figure out, I'll let you know," he answered with a wink.

"Thank you, sir. Now I think I'll explore the castle a bit. I would like to try and get a little more familiar with it before term starts in a couple of weeks," she said, rising and starting for the door.

"I think that is a very wise decision, my dear. Have fun," he said and she exited his office, officially entering into her new life as Elise Thatcher.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Okay, so I know that this update is way overdue and I am truly sorry for that. I've had a lot on my plate recently and just haven't had the time to write which has made me pretty sad. :'( This story's updates will be coming a little less frequently than my other stories because I am also currently working on the sequel to one of my other stories as well as editing the first one in that particular series so please try to be patient with me.<em>**

**_So no one gets confused while reading, I am going to keep calling her Christiana unless it is someone else in the dialogue talking to her or written in Tom's POV. Then she will be called either Elise or Miss Thatcher. _**

_**Another thing, if you see any mistakes in facts about the wizarding world just comment on it by saying **"pfft, muggle" **and I will do my best to fix it. Same with things that I mess up European or 1940s wise, just comment**_ _"pfft, American" **or** "pfft, teenagers" **and I will try to fix that as well. I will be changing a few things so that it corresponds with my story a bit better and so some things will hopefully be more understandable, for example the Sorting Hat not taking Christiana's opinion into consideration. But if it does end up going too far off from the truth and bothers you, once again just let me know and I will do my best to fix it without messing up the story line. :)**_

_**Really hoped that you liked this update and I hope to hear your feedback on it! Love y'all! :D**_


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